------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
------------------
Chapter 100 - Maybe You Want to Get Rid of Us
We drew up the contract immediately.
The terms were reasonable enough—at least by this world’s standards of “reasonable.”
“The second party, consisting of forty-eight individuals, may not change their residence without permission from the first party. The second party may not leave the designated administrative region without the first party's consent. The second party must diligently perform the following tasks... Isn't this basically a slave contract!?”
“If you don’t like it, feel free to decline. Or should we head straight to court?”
“I-I’ll sign it! I’ll sign it!”
The bandits answered loudly, tears streaming down their faces.
Were they really that grateful? Poor guys.
It was such a heartwarming sight that I almost shed a tear myself.
When they first learned I was the Count of Vermont, they had been shocked.
Apparently, Vermont had earned quite the positive reputation.
They all looked overwhelmed with gratitude, like they didn’t know what to do with themselves.
Once the contracts were signed, I dispersed the bandits for the time being.
There was no fear of them running off since we had all their identities on record.
If they fled, their families would also become fugitives.
Holding the contract, complete with the bandits' thumbprints, I set off for the Arient estate.
“Mister! Mister! Show me that thing where you pull the sword from your mouth again!”
“Aslan… Are you sure you’re okay? Isn’t your throat sore… or anything?”
The ride to Arient was full of chatter.
I had separated the carriages to prevent anyone from seeing Yuri’s real face, only for Charlotte and Julia to hop into mine, leaving Yuri and Merilda alone together.
Merilda seemed to be enjoying herself immensely.
At this rate, shouldn’t Yuri just marry the princess and climb the social ladder?
In return for matchmaking them, I could take Charlotte and Julia as my own. It’d be a win-win for everyone.
“I can’t draw the sword by myself. Only Sylvia can pull it out. And no, my throat doesn’t hurt, but it’s always uncomfortable, like there’s something foreign in there. It’s… unpleasant.”
“Oh! It doesn’t hurt? That’s a relief… N-Not that I was worried! It’s just that if you died from a throat injury, there’d be no one to free us slaves, so I was concerned! Don’t get the wrong idea!”
“…”
I hadn’t even said anything, but Julia was already flustered, spilling out excuses in rapid-fire succession.
No matter the reason, the fact that she was worried about me was clear.
She still wasn’t good at hiding her true feelings.
“That sword is so cool! Hey, Knight Sister! Did you give it a name yet?”
“Oh, right, I haven’t named it yet. Let’s see… It’s so fast when I use it, maybe something like ‘Zippy’…”
“I’ll be the one naming the sword.”
“What!?”
I barely managed to stop the disaster of a name from happening, just in time.
If it were Sylvia’s personal sword, I wouldn’t care what she named it.
But this sword was absorbed into my body.
The thought of having something called ‘Zippy’ inside me made me feel sick to my stomach.
“What name are you going to give it? It’s going to be super cool, right?”
“Since this sword was bestowed upon me by my lord, I leave the naming to him. I’ll accept whatever name he chooses.”
“...”
Charlotte’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Even Sylvia, though she didn’t show it much, seemed to be looking forward to it.
Great. Now I had to name the sword? Can’t we just leave it nameless?
“Fine. I’ll come up with an amazing name. Just wait.”
“Wow!”
I didn’t have anything in mind, so I’d stall for time.
At least until I figured out how to get this sword out of my body.
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ is wary of the sword inside your body.]
I could almost hear Kali growling in my head.
She was wary of the sword? Why?
The only weapons capable of harming an evil god were supposed to be holy swords. Could this sword be one?
‘But she didn’t seem to care about Charlotte’s sword.’
If it were a holy sword, why wasn’t she concerned about Charlotte’s sword?
Was it because she trusted Charlotte?
Who knows. Trying to understand Kali’s fickle nature was a waste of time, so I dropped it.
“Sylvia, it’s time for you to stop being an instructor.”
“W-What!?”
“Pass on your instructor duties to Yuria for now, and train two or three more to take over. Let our staff handle it from now on.”
“D-Does that mean I’m being fired from my position at Vermont Security…?”
Sylvia’s voice quivered, and she grabbed my sleeve with desperate eyes.
What? Am I crazy?
Why would I fire someone who’s doing a great job?
“I said stop being an instructor, not that you’re being fired. It’s not right for the CEO to also work as an instructor, you know.”
“Oh… So you’re not firing me…”
“Of course not. Besides, you can’t even wield a weapon anymore unless it’s that sword. You’ll be focusing on your role as my bodyguard. You can still handle management tasks from the estate.”
“I see… From now on, I have no choice but to stay by your side. Yes, for your safety, I’ll have to stay close…”
Sylvia finally understood, nodding as she processed my words.
Up until now, I hadn’t been too worried about letting Sylvia act independently.
I was confident she could survive any danger.
But now that she couldn’t use any weapons besides magic, she was more vulnerable.
Once she ran out of mana, she’d be unable to defend herself.
It was safer for her to remain by my side as a bodyguard from now on.
“Hey! The knight’s always with Aslan anyway. Isn’t it a bit unfair…?”
“Yeah! It’s not fair if only Knight Sister gets to guard him! I want to guard him too!”
“If either of you can defeat Sylvia, I’ll change the bodyguard duties.”
“…!”
I shut them down quickly, and both Charlotte and Julia puffed up their cheeks in frustration.
They were really upset.
They probably wanted the bodyguard role so they could travel around freely with me.
“I’m going to get really strong! Knight Sister! Since you’re no longer an instructor, you can help me train more, right? Right?”
“Uh, sure, I guess…”
“Then train me all day tomorrow! I’ll get so strong that I’ll surpass you!”
“All day might be a bit much…”
“Hey, Earthy, do you know any Great Spirits?”
[Kyaaah! Why are you asking that?!]
“Well, you’re the only Great Spirit I know. Just controlling the earth has its limits, you know? I need to meet more Great Spirits to get stronger.”
[Kyaaah! Are you calling me useless?! You insolent brat!]
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
As they whispered back and forth, Charlotte and Julia seemed more determined than ever.
Fine, let them be.
As long as they get stronger, that’s all that matters.
***
“Ah, Brother! Long time no see! You must be tired from your journey. Why not rest here for a while?”
“Well, not really. I actually brought a gift for you, Count.”
“A… a gift?”
The Count of Arient gulped, his face growing pale.
Was he really that excited to hear I had a gift for him?
His trembling hands took the contract from me, and his eyes widened.
“F-Forty-eight people? You want us to feed and house them… and even pay their wages? Brother, did I do something to upset you? Whatever it is, we can talk it out!”
“Just read it to the end. These guys are experts at maintaining roads. You know the road leading north, right?”
“The one that’s so terrible that carriages can hardly get through?”
“Well, it’s in perfect condition now. These guys were keeping it up so they could rob people. I’m giving you top-tier labor here.”
“Is that true? I’ve got two hundred people working day and night just to maintain the Vermont highways! We’re so short on manpower, my sons and even the butlers are working around the clock! Thank you! Thank you so much! You’ve saved us!”
Tears welled up in the Count’s eyes as he knelt before me.
The guy was totally misunderstanding my intentions.
Patting him on the shoulder, I left him kneeling there.
If these guys could handle that rough northern road, the Vermont highways would be a breeze.
No need to worry about road maintenance for a while.
After a quick stop at Arient, we headed straight for the capital.
Our mission wasn’t over yet, after all.
We still had to escort Merilda to the Northern Grand Duke’s villa in the capital.
After the bandit incident, we made it to the villa without any further issues.
When we got off the carriage, I noticed Yuri was already escorting Merilda by the hand, with an uncharacteristically polite demeanor.
“Ah!? What are you doing with a lady…!”
“Stop being shy now that we’ve come this far.”
“Who’s shy!?”
With that, I swept Julia up by the waist and lifted her effortlessly before gently setting her back down.
Julia, who had clearly been pouting earlier, now had her cheeks puffed out, making her look even more adorably upset.
Sylvia looked on, seemingly in shock, wearing a blank expression.
“Ah... I did that...?”
It seemed she was recalling how she had thrown a fit to get me to lift her.
Now that she realized how embarrassing that was, her face turned bright red.
Yeah, reflect on that a bit, will you?
“Me too! Please lift me up like you did Julia!”
“Okay. Sounds good.”
“Eek…!”
Finally, I set Charlotte down with a flourish.
If only these troublesome kids would behave as well as Charlotte did.
Charlotte was naturally kind and straightforward, making it worryingly easy to trust her.
“We’ve arrived. I will now conclude the escort duty, Your Highness.”
“Fufu. Thank you for your hard work, Count. As you said, I should study diligently while I stay at the academy.”
It was time to bid farewell to Merilda.
Behind me, Charlotte and Julia were fidgeting, looking like they had something to say.
Noticing their expressions, Merilda spoke up first.
“You escorts have worked hard too. Since the academy and Vermont are so close, how about we meet often in the future?”
“Sounds great! I want to get closer to the princess…!”
“I thought all noble girls were stuck-up, but I’m relieved Merilda isn’t! Let’s meet again!”
“Cha—Charlotte….”
“Fufu. Yes, I find I can communicate better with you all than with the arrogant noble girls.”
Even her comment, which was rude to say the least, was met with a bright smile from Merilda.
From Merilda's perspective, girls her age probably fell into two broad categories.
One was the type who looked down on her, thinking they were better because she came from a remote village at the northern edge.
The other was the type who acted like maids, eager to please, hoping to catch a crumb of favor.
It seemed she was genuinely happy to have found a real friend, rather than being stuck with those kinds.
“Yuria, we’ll meet personally later too. Don’t forget you promised to show me around the Magic Academy?”
“Ah, yes. Of course, Your Highness….”
With a bright smile that I had never seen before, Merilda turned to Yuri.
As she did, Yuri's shoulders drooped.
...He looked utterly exhausted.
“Aslan, Aslan.”
“...?”
“Yuri... Is Yuria attending the Imperial Magic Academy?”
“Yeah. He just enrolled this year.”
“Wow!”
Charlotte and Julia looked at Yuri with slightly starry eyes.
Now that I think about it, I should start sending Charlotte and Julia to school soon.
In the past, I had feared that the kids would catch Yuri's attention, but those days were long gone.
Yuri had taken his time in Vermont to resolve misunderstandings and build friendships.
Should I send them directly to the Imperial Magic Academy that Yuri attends?
I could force a special admission for Yuri, but adding two more would be impossible.
That meant they would have to pass the regular entrance exam.
Julia could probably pass with a bit of effort.
As for Charlotte... hmm...
‘With special admissions, they'll manage somehow.’
That child possesses unprecedented talent, able to wield the power of a Sword Master in her young body.
I believe there are special admissions for the Combat Magic Department as well.
It seems like both of them shouldn't have too much trouble getting in.
“You two. How about attending school starting next year?”
“Eh? Why?”
“Because you can learn much more that way.”
“I’m already learning enough from the books in the library. Plus, we’re studying together too...”
“Are you trying to get rid of us, Mister...?”
Charlotte and Julia looked at me with trembling eyes, cautiously parting their lips.
They looked terribly scared.
What’s with this reaction?
I was just trying to send them to school, and suddenly the atmosphere became strange.
------------------
HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
------------------
